1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to machine-readable symbol reader systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
A checkout lane at a grocery store or other retail point of sale (POS) can be a demanding, high-pressure environment. A store employee operating a checkout stand (i.e., an operator or “checker”) can be expected to provide exceptional customer service, which may include quickly totaling each customer's purchase and collecting payment. Rapidly processing customer purchases reduces the time other customers must wait to make their purchases. When a store is busy and checkout lines are long, operators can experience increased pressure to rapidly process customer purchases.
One method for improving the speed and efficiency of an operator is to provide a machine-readable symbol reader to allow the operator to quickly scan objects associated with machine-readable symbols. As a machine-readable symbol (e.g., barcode symbol, matrix code symbol) is passed through a scan volume (or scanning area), the machine-readable symbol is read by a machine-readable symbol reader, such as a scanner, and transformed into electrical signals. The electrical signals can be decoded into alphanumerical characters or other data that can be used as input to a data processing system, such as a POS terminal (e.g., an electronic cash register). The POS terminal can use the decoded data to, for example, look up a price for the article, apply electronic coupons, and award points for a retailer or other rewards program. Scanning a machine-readable symbol on objects enables rapid totaling of the price of such objects and thereby increases operator efficiency.
An object can have multiple sides, not all of which might be presented for or visible during scanning, depending on the shape of the object and the type of reader. For example, a simple six-sided rectangular box-shaped object can have a leading side (or side leading the object through the scan volume), a trailing side (opposite the leading side and last through the scan volume), a bottom side, a top side, a front side positioned nearest to or facing the operator (also known as the operator side), and a back side positioned away from the operator (also known as the customer side).
A significant amount of time for current checkout processing results from the operator grasping an object, orienting the object to present an optical code to a reader, moving the object past the reader's scan volume, and then bagging the object. The physical stress from moving objects past the reader may increase the potential for repetitive motion injuries.
Many readers associated with checkout stands are placed outside the ergonomically recommended work zone for an operator due to the requirement that a cash box needs to be placed in a checkout stand directly in front of the operator. Due to this placement of the cash box, the machine-readable symbol reader must be displaced a distance from the operator that is outside the operator's preferred work zone or even outside the operator's maximum work zone. This sub-optimal placement of the reader may increase the potential for work related fatigue or injuries.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional “flip-lid” type cash box 10 that is often used in geographic regions where operators scan objects while seated. The cash box 10 includes a base or body 12 that includes a bottom wall 14 and sidewalls 16 that define an interior volume 18 in which currency may be placed (e.g., bills, coins, checks, etc.). In the illustrated embodiment, the cash box 10 has a rectangular shape. The cash box 10 includes a top opening 20 disposed at the uppermost portions of the sidewalls 16 that allows access to the interior volume 18.
The cash box 10 also includes a lid 22 pivotally attached to the body 12 via hinges 24. The lid 22 is pivotable between an open position and a closed position to regulate access to the interior volume 18. The cash box 10 may be provided with a locking mechanism 26 that, for example, may be operated with a key.
FIGS. 2 and 3 show a conventional checkout stand 28 at which an operator 30 may be seated. The checkout stand 28 includes a top work surface 32, an input conveyor belt 34, and an output conveyor belt 36. The checkout stand 28 also includes a two-plane machine-readable symbol reader 38 that includes a horizontal reader portion 38A that views bottom sides of objects 40 through a horizontal window 42 and a vertical reader portion 38B for reading vertical sides of objects that include machine-readable symbols 44. The checkout stand 28 also includes a cash box reception portion 46 into which the cash box 10 may be mounted. For example, the cash box reception portion 46 may take the form of a shelf onto which the cash box 10 may be placed. The lid 22 of the cash box 10 is visible in the views of FIGS. 2 and 3.
When positioned inside the cash box reception portion 46 of the checkout stand 28 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the cash box 10 is located directly in front of and adjacent to the operator 30 so that the operator may readily access the contents of the cash box during a transaction. The machine-readable symbol reader 38 is also placed in front of the operator 30, but is offset by a relatively large distance from the operator since the cash box 10 uses the space closest to the operator. FIG. 3 illustrates in dashed lines the recommended ergonomic work zones 48 and 50 for this type of labor operation. The zone 48 may be referred to as the “preferred work area” or “preferred work zone,” which applies to reaching movements that have arm support and occur at a frequency greater than ten times per minute. This stipulation closely matches the movements necessary for scanning grocery or other retail objects. As can be seen, the entire preferred work zone 48 is outside the coverage of the horizontal window 42 of the reader 38.
The zone 50 may be referred to as the “maximum work area” or “maximum work zone,” which is the zone for which greater reach is required and should not be used at high frequency, unlike the preferred work zone 48. Note that most scanning operations require the operator 30 to reach into the maximum work zone 50 to utilize the horizontal window 42 for scanning. Moreover, a portion of the horizontal window 42 is actually beyond the maximum work zone 50, which causes the operator 30 to reach beyond what is recommended.